Roads, pipelines, buildings and other infrastructure in the Canadian North are not prepared for the stresses of climate change, a report released today says.

The National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy study of how the Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut would fare in a rapidly warming world, paints a stark picture of the challenges facing the Arctic.

"Energy pipelines built over permafrost terrain could be at risk of rupture and leakage if design and maintenance protocols do not account for the potential for permafrost thawing," the report said.

The report goes on to say northern communities, which are often connected to the rest of Canada by a single road or airport, face skyrocketing costs, because as the ground thaws, there will be a "gradual loss of structural integrity" to infrastructure.

The report says the federal government must pump more money into science-based weather prediction to give advance warning to northern communities. The report also says the feds will have to develop new standards and codes for building construction to take into account the threats faced in the North.

The report comes as U.S. President Barack Obama announced he would make a fly-in visit to the Copenhagen climate change conference next month to give "momentum" to the discussions there.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper's spokesman, Dimitri Soudas, said Harper might attend if last-minute plans emerge for a meeting at the conference that would include "all major leaders."